2. Ray Johnson: Creator of Mail Art
Ray Johnson (1927-1995) was a seminal Pop Art figure in the 1950s, an
early conceptualist, and a pioneer of mail art. His preferred medium
was collage, that quintessentially twentieth-century art form that
reflects the increased (as the century wore on) collision of
disparate visual and verbal information that bombards modern man.
Integrating texts and images drawn from a multiplicity of sources —
from mass media to telephone conversations — Johnson’s innovativeness
spread beyond the confines of the purely visual.
http://www.rayjohnsonestate.com/biography/
3. Kurt Schwitters
Opened by Customs
Opened by Customs 1937–8 is a collage made of paper, printed
paper, oil paint and graphite by the German artist Kurt Schwitters.
The pasted-together fragments have been cut and torn from a
variety of sources, including parcel paper, Nazi administrative
labels, a large section of printed Norwegian text from a book or a
pamphlet, a blue label for Spanish oranges (stuck face down so
that the logo is seen in reverse) and a printed list of travel-related
words in German, including ‘airline boarding pass’, ‘baggage
insurance’ and ‘sleeper car’. At the bottom right of the collage is a
piece of white paper featuring an insignia that bears the words
‘Deutsche Arbeit’ (German Work) set within a laurel wreath.
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/m/mail-art
4. Just the Facts, Ma’am.
https://www.sosusps.com/copy-of-sos-usps-gallery
5. Ann Gant, The Mail Swims From Sea to Shining Sea
https://www.sosusps.com/copy-of-sos-usps-gallery
6. Pushing the Envelope: A Mail Art Gallery Show
https://www.artsteps.com/view/5f503fc1dc78ee3346ac0c12
7. It Should
Look Like Art
on the
Outside
Decorate the
envelope if
you use one.
http://www.atcsforall.com/forum/showthread.php?31669-Envie-Addicts-Unite!-November/page33&p=1757587#post1757587
10. It Should
Look Like Art
on the
Outside
Decorate the
envelope if
you use one.
http://www.atcsforall.com/forum/showthread.php?31669-Envie-Addicts-Unite!-November/page33&p=1757587#post1757587
https://www.kwernerdesign.com/blog/super-easy-mail-art-idea-colorful-rainbow-envelope/
12. Mail the Art to Someone
to Surprise them and
Brighten Their Day
13. Theme
● I want you to create a positive or encouraging word,
phrase, or quote.
○ You can do your lettering by hand or cut letters from magazines to
make your words. Think about the size and style of the letters. Make
sure it is easy to read.
● The design of your card should go with the text. It
could have images or just colors. You can draw, collage,
sew, do image transfers, etc.
Since text is a pillar of
graphic design, you need to
incorporate text on the front
of your postcard.
14. Requirements
● Decorate the front and the
back if mailing as a postcard
or decorate an envelope that
it will fit in.
○ Leave room on one side for the
address and stamps
● Craftsmanship is super
important! Make sure nothing
will fall off in the mail.
○ You can sew things on to your
postcard or glue really well. We
can even seal it with mod podge.
Front
Back
16. Now Get Started!
● Blank Postcards are on the shelf under the TV.
○ Thinner postcards are better if you want to stitch through them since
you’d probably end up with another layer on the back
○ Thicker postcards are sturdier if you don’t plan to stitch
● Use magazines, watercolor, markers, papers in the rainbow
drawers- basically any supplies we’ve covered so far!
● Ask if you have an idea and aren’t sure if you can sue
those supplies or if we have them.
